Beer: Reviews & Ratings

Received this bottle in a recent trade and I'm excited about finally getting to try a HF beer.. I love saisons as well so...

Hmmmm... The nose on this has me thinking more, "Gueuze" than "Saison". Right off the bat, I get this sharp acidic grape note that definitely screams wine barrel.. Very little of the yeasty funkiness one would normally find in a saison, but I'm not really complaining. It's just.... different that I was expecting..

Loads of wine notes flood the palate with each sip... Tart and acidic although not bracingly sour... this definitely drinks like a gueuze to me... a mild one, mind you... but a gueuze... I'm not 100% sure I'm a huge fan of putting this in a barrel as opposed to just blending all 3 together... This seems a little all over the place... the barrel dominates and not necessarily in a good way...

I really wanted to like this more, I really did.. It just fell a little short for me... there are much better examples of the style than this... (983 characters)

Pours a hazy, pale straw gol with a thin, crisp white head. Fades to a thin collar and dots of lace. Nose of oak, grass, lemon, peach, red grape, straw and light acidity though it lacks the immediate visceral punch of some of HF's other saisons. Flavor starts with citric acidity, grape, and grass. Reminds me a lot of how Art batch 1 tastes currently, with a little bit of Flora's lactic and tart presence. Honestly not tasting much of Ann other than the strong doughy base to the body. Mouthfeel is medium thin, well carbonated and a strong woody and slightly acidic finish. Very balanced and crisp, but honestly let down by what were admittedly colossal, unfair expectations. Probably wouldn't age this or trade your soul for this (I'm confident that if you pulled a Pepsi Challenge on this with new batches of Arthur and Vera Mae, well, rare wouldn't win), but still an exceptional saison as usual from HF. (950 characters)

Opens tart lemon zest and slightly bitter yeastiness. Middle is coriander, more lemon tartness, and a clean bittersweet spice. End is hay, wood, and yeast. Finishes messy and yeasty with a tart, sticky aftertaste. Great balance. Just really enjoyable.

Light bodied with high carbonation. Lively and aggressive in the mouth and goes down foamy and yeasty. Messy and accented finish with a lingering aftertaste. Real drinkable.

Very good, but overall, as a Hill Farmstead saison, this one's a bit of a disappointment. The body and nose are nice enough but the flavor is a bit plain. There's nothing that stands out to me in CD5 that separates itself from its brethren. That being said, this is still Hill Farmstead and therefore, a more than enjoyable beer. (1,118 characters)

Beer pours a hazy light yellow with a thin white head. Aroma doesn't hit you over the head, but still is pretty impressive, though a little more subtle than I would've expected. It's a nice mix of oak, some unidentified fruit and funk. Flavor is very nice and complex, but I think I was expecting a bit more. I'm certainly getting the oak of Art and light tartness of Flora, with a hint of funkiness, but it's got a bit of an odd woody flavor in the finish. Whatever fruit (grape?) that was in the smell certainly comes through here as well in a nice way. The flavors, unfortunately, aren't as bright as I expected. Mouthfeel is a little on the thin side too and carbonation isn't huge to give it more life. tOverall, another nice saison from HF, but this one isn't as outstanding as the earlier reviews would indicate. It seems to be less than the sum of its parts. (915 characters)

Opened during a CD4-10 vertical tasting. Overall this beer had a huge white grape/wine presence that was semi Chardonnay-like with a nice light tartness. Although this beer was super drinkable and still tasty it seems like the flavors may have become slightly muted since it was released over two years ago and wasn't quite drinking as good as other CDs or the components it is made up of. (391 characters)

S - The smell is surprisingly heavy on the honey, with a nice tropical fruit funk, and light hand lotion and lavender soap malt flavors. A bit of peppery yeast and mild phenolic character.

T - The flavor is a little more dry, oak, and slightly seltzery, with less malt sweetness and honey present. A tad soapy, with lactic lemon character, and tart stone fruits. Finish is oaky, vinous, with a bit of musty brett.

D - Good beer, and among the best in the series. That being said, it seems like a bit less than the sum of its parts, as I think I like all the base Saisons just as much. Not worth a king's ransom, but certainly a well-made brew. (1,018 characters)

Juicy Fruit™, jackfruit, faint peach, and orange. Complementing oak, with a touch of tart citrus rounding out the back end of the nose. Bright, clean, and appetizing aroma.

The palate is comparatively cluttered; there's a clear sense in which all three of the base beers are present in the blend. CD5 opens with a sharp, short citric acidity which blends with a note of juicy white grape, followed by soft mango and pear, and finishing oaky and lemony. The base is fairly sweet and biscuity.

Medium-thin bodied, but a little heavy on the tongue. Tightly acidic. Nice balance between the fruity notes, acid, and saison base.

The nose is delightful, but this doesn't translate to the palate as well as Ann or Art do. Very good, if you can believe it, just not very, very good. (917 characters)

Civil Disobedience #5 pours a hazy straw yellow with a moderate sized creamy head on top. A fair amount of lacing clings to the glass.

The aroma is fruity with a touch of funk. Notes of lemon rind, orange peel and a touch of oak and spice (pepper?) are present. I think I detected a little alcohol too.

Each sip of this medium bodied beer is soft and smooth with mild carbonation. The flavor begins sweet and finishes tart. Pale malt sweetness is quickly followed by lemon rind, orange peel, grape, mango and a touch of oak. It finishes moderately tart. Once gone the lemon and oak linger.

This is a very tasty, well balanced beer that's not overly spicy. (658 characters)

Smell: A little funky, citrusy, oaky. Very nice smell, very "soft", if that makes any sense.

Taste: Very nice. Funky, saison-like character is there. A bit of citrus. Very refreshing. Oak is definitely there.

Mouthfeel: This is where I feel the CD 5 is different. It has a smooth, creamy mouthfeel unlike the crispness of other saisons (Arthur, Anna, etc). I would credit this characteristic to the blending and the barrel.

Overall: I drank this in celebration of attaining a internship with an organization I had wanted to become involved with for years. The beer did not disappoint. Was it the best beer I've ever had? No. I really liked it, but I believe I would still consume Arthur more regularly if both were released on consistent basis.

I bought this beer on a trip made from Montreal to HF. Everyone should visit if they have the chance. It's a great experience. (959 characters)

Pours a hazy orange with a bright fluffy head that settles leaving some nice lacing and a ring of head around the glass

Smells of musty basement and a touch of oak.

First taste produces some tart citrus (lemon/grapefruit). Then you get the more funky, earthy tastes. Finishes with a white wine like quality. I'm diggin' this!

This feels great! There is a nice tartness that make your mouth water. As you swallow, it is just dry enough to make you want more.

Hill Farmstead fucking nails saisons, and this is no exception. This is one of my favorites...right up there with blue label Arthur. Haven't had Ann, so I can't compare that...Thanks Shaun for what you do. (706 characters)

A~ glowing creamsicle orange, almost as if theres a light illuminating the beer. looks like an amazing glass of tang lol. nice fluffy white head with a little lacing as it goes down.

S~ lots of citrus, lemon, lime, mango, orange, grapefruit, guava and i could probably keep going haha followed by an amazing peppery saison sensation then some bready yeast and honey all around.

T~ well the nose doesn't come up short here! lots of barnyard, tart, funky goodness. i love how sour the CD series brews end up being. some wheat from Flora is there and the honey from Ann really shines to make this brew all sorts of amazing!

M~ smoooth! of course... very nicely carbonated, not as dry as i expected and nice thickness from the honey.

O~ yup... holy shit! a perfect 4.5 in my opinion! i love the acidity, blending these wine barrel aged brews is just a whole another beast. why can't i drink HF saisons every single day! (962 characters)

Huge thanks to phingdong for getting this one to me. Served in a Hill Farmstead wine glass. Pours a crystal clear straw color. Nice and sparkling with a good white head. Nice retention and lacing.

The nose has light hay and a bit of lemon. Dry and light; very crisp. A bit of lingering citrus, earth, and farmhouse funk. Flavor is very dry with hay and a very faint acidity. Touch of white wine and oak in the background. Light lemon zest through the finish. Very bright. Supremely drinkable. (494 characters)

A: Hazy golden colored beer with about an inch of white, foamy head. S: Smell is super funky. Lots of fruitiness, grape and oranges. White wine aroma. Some spicy pepperiness. Smells amazing, kinda like a lambic/saison blend going on here. T: Wow. I have to say this is one of the best beers I've tasted so far. Starts off with funky grapes and white wine. Lactic acid character, lemony, tart fruits. Must be the bugs used but it reminds me a lot of Juicy/Mimosa. Finishes with oak dryness paired with wine and brett earthy/mustiness. A bit of a sweet malty/bready flavor close to the end as well. M: Very nice clean, lemony tartness. Not overpowering though, very well done. Nice, medium mouthfeel with nice carbonation. The dryness at the end is great. O: One of my favorite Hill Farmstead beers and one of my favorite overall. This is a very well done soured saison. I'm glad I have another bottle left, I will be trying it down the road to see if the funkiness develops into something nice. (1,026 characters)

Thank you Bill for bringing thisPours a beautiful golden yellow with a nice toothy white head. Looks great!Smells oak and yeasty. Lots of great spicy saison aromas. Smells like a blend of Ann and art...Tastes very solid. Maybe not as solid as Ann. Certainly reminiscent of Art in a lot of ways. Very tasty beer.Mouthfeel a great. Well carbonated and solid overall. It's beer is very solid. One of hill farmstead's best barrel aged saisons yet. (448 characters)

Pour: Hazy yellow-orange, with two fingers of white, fluffy head. Head hangs around a bit, and leaves superb lacing. Per the usual, this Hill Farmstead beer looks flawless.

Smell: Wow. White grape must up front, followed by a nice pear and green apple tartness. A slight touch of lemon in there. Sweetness is light and yeasty.

Taste: At first, a twang of pear tartness, followed a lemon tartness and then a more complex white grape funk. Lots of white wine comes in next as this beer flexes its barrel treatment. Finishes with a biscuit sweetness, and a really nice oaky dryness. A light white grape must lingers on the palate.

Mouthfeel: Tartness is beautiful, but not acetic or puckering, just clean and lemony. Sweetness is just barely there. A little doughy through the middle to finish, but the oaky dryness makes the finish here beautiful.

Overall: Hands down the best saison I’ve ever had. Super clean, and incredibly delicate. The flavors from Ann, Art, and Flora really meld together here beautifully.

Also, it feels weird to review all of these beers from HF so highly, but seriously, there are no complaints with this beer. The slight doughyness in the mouthfeel was nitpicking at best. Another beautiful beer from HF. Thank you Shaun! (1,296 characters)